Sacrificial Wolf
by MissElizabethPendragon
Summary: The Bad Wolf played a bigger part in Rose's life than anyone knows. Years later, Rose finds herself in the possession of a Cult in her home universe. She'll have to rely on the TARDIS and Jack to get the Doctor's attention. Especially if she wants to survive the coming eclipse. Rose/Doctor with Jack and Donna Reunion fic. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hello. This is my very first attempt at writing Doctor Who in any shape or form. If the characters are horribly OOC, then I most sincerely apologize. On that note, I am taking liberties with this and changing things. It goes AU right at the episode Midnight, it also assumes that the Library never happened. I adore River, but she doesn't fit my story. Keep in mind that I have little to no knowledge of Classic Who and it's been a while since I've actually watched any episodes as our WiFi has decided to part from this world. Constructive criticism is always appreciated, especially because this is my first in a new fandom. This gets choppy and awkward around the first chapter. I'll fix that eventually. Other than that, enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Obviously, I do not own Doctor Who. If you recognize it, it's not mine.

**XXXXX**

**Stardate:** 1/Apple7-Delta4 **Location:** Meridian Prime

Rose lifted her head off the cold metal supporting her chains. He was back, he always came back. Whether it was to taunt or to simply reassure himself she was still there, she wasn't sure. Her back ached, her wrists quit bleeding days ago, and she couldn't feel anything below her ankles.

"Good evening, Wolf." He spoke from the door that had slid open with a hiss of air. "I hope you enjoyed your dinner. It was your last."

Rose chuckled. It came out more hoarse than she wanted. "My last? Then I was right. The eclipse is upon us."

He looked up from the wrist computer he had been studying closely. "Of course you were right. How could you be wrong? This is why you were chosen. Only a being of time could satisfy my goddess." He sighed as he looked over clothes. "I'll send in someone with your dress in the morning. I am old, I grow weary. With your sacrifice, Wolf, my goddess will grant me life anew."

Rose leaned her head on the other metal support and shifted her chains. The cold stung for a moment; and she briefly considered finding a way to lie on the floor. She'd break her arms trying. She needed what was left of her strength if she had any chance of this succeeding.

He watched her shift before he found what he was looking for. Then, he nodded and walked back to the door. "I'll check on you in the morning." He had just turned the corner out of the door when he turned back and stuck his head around the door. "Oh, and Wolf, how are you enjoying the new chains?"

Rose pulled on them lightly. "Sturdy. They're better than the last, at least."

He chuckled. "Yes. You can't turn these into dust. They're timeless; forged by the Time Lords at the beginning of the War, in the Mountains of Solace and Solitude. They were made to hold the Daleks."

Rose stopped pulling and gave a long look at the chains. How did someone like him get their hands on Time Lord technology? She sighed. The things you could find on the black market. "Everything turns to dust eventually, even the Time Lords."

He took a moment to respond. "Yes, but you'll be dead long before then. Good night, Wolf."

Rose shifted her head back on to the support and closed her eyes. "Sleep well, Dorian."

The door shut, and she was left alone.

She sat up and moved into meditative position. If she was right, and Dorian wasn't wrong, she was always right about timing, then she had ten hours to do this. There were no cameras and no microphones. She was truly alone, and she had begun conserving her strength for this from the moment she had learned she couldn't get out alone.

Rose closed her eyes and took deep breaths. She slipped into her trance and knew no more of the outside world.

**XXXXX**

She awoke in darkness. This was normal, and only momentary. Soon there was a pin-pick of golden light and the beginnings of a song she knew from the moment she was born. The light grew in intensity until it warmed her being, and the song grew to a steady rhythm. When she was sure it couldn't get any brighter, the light dimmed and the song was almost muted. It was little more than a steady hum in the back of her mind.

A cloud of golden dust surrounded her and an excited, familiar presence filled her head. "Wolf! My Wolf! Where have you been? I couldn't see you, I couldn't feel you. I searched, Sister. I looked so hard for Him. You must come home, Wolf. Our Thief needs you."

Rose chuckled. "Yes, I know. I'm aware of what he was ready to say. I know he meant it." A small smile slipped itself on to her face. "A lot has changed, Sister, and I have much to tell you. Now is not the time, however. I need your help."

The cloud shimmered. "Anything you need, Wolf. You know this. It has always been so."

Rose sighed in relief. It was a lot to ask of the TARDIS without giving her any explanation. She had been worried she would tell her no. "Then this is what I need you to do. Listen carefully, and trust me. Can you do that?"

The cloud shimmered again. "Anything, Sister."

Rose smiled again. "I need you to bond with me. I have to get a message to Jack. I know he's in Cardiff and I know what he's capable of. I'm aware of what We did to him, and I stand by Our decision. He is needed for many things to come. One of them being this; I am being held captive by a Merinian named Dorian. He has plans for me that would not bode well for the Universe. I cannot elaborate now, Sister. I have enough strength to get a message to him. You will need to get the Doctor to him; confirm his story."

The cloud shimmered once more. She hesitated. "Wolf, the power almost killed you last time. It would have if Our Thief did not adore you so. Are you sure about this?"

Rose shifted her hair out of her face. "I am much older than you know, Sister. I have seen things, and done things that you know not of. Trust me on this. I can handle it now. I merely need you to be an anchor. Pull it out when I grow too weak. I've been hiding this bond from Dorian for a long few days. He cannot learn of it now, not when he's so close to what he desires."

The cloud shifted and hummed in agreement. "Okay. You have ten minutes, Sister. Then I pull the power. Be swift and true. State what you need and do it quickly. There will be time for explanations later."

Rose hummed. "There will be."

The light and music increased. The golden cloud shifted around her skin and the music flowed louder through her head. Rose closed her eyes and let the power consume her. She began to hum with the melody she could only hear in her head. She twirled to the rhythm.

The Wolf danced.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Again, Doctor Who is not mine. If you recognize it, I don't own it. On to the story.

**Stardate: **4/Orange6-Omega2 **Location:** Cardiff, Earth

Jack shut his door behind him and limped over to the couch against the wall. Five Weevils in one day. Even with his brilliant team, that was an exhausting day. When he thought the day had finally been over, Myfwanny had decided to make a mess of her nest. Ianto and Gwen had already left for the day so he took it upon himself to clean it up. He hadn't been expecting to trip over the egg. How that had even happened, he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

Now, he was alone and it was quiet. His ankle would be fine in the morning and he'd get Ianto on research for that egg. He took a calming breath and let his eyes drift shut.

**XXXXX**

_It was a fantastic dream. He was back on the TARDIS with Rose and the Doctor. They had just come back inside after spending an amazing afternoon on Woman Wept. The Doctor was making a lame joke and smiling large enough for all three of them. Rose was leaning against the console, huddled inside her large jacket, seeking warmth from the Rotor. It was a good day._

_Suddenly, Rose stood up straight, like a Private being called to Attention. The Doctor didn't seem to notice this. Rose slowly turned to look at Jack. Her eyes were gold. "Jack." Her voice seemed to echo back on itself._

"_Rosie? What's wrong?" He walked up to her and put his hands on her shoulders. She didn't respond. Jack turned to the Doctor to ask what was wrong with Rose, but he wasn't moving. Nothing was moving, the TARDIS wasn't even humming. It was eerily silent._

"_Come to me, Jack. Listen." Rose was now looking him straight in the eyes. He could see the eddies of the Vortex and the dust rings of planets; suns being born and stars dying. He felt his age again._

"_What is it, Rose? I'm listening."_

_Rose smiled that cheeky grin, tongue tucked between her teeth. "I need you, Jack. I need your help. Come."_

_Jack smirked. "Keep that smile up, luv, and that won't be a problem."_

_Rose's image started to shift, and the scene fell away to a new one. He was staring a damp, stone wall. The room was ridiculously cold and it reeked of sewer. "Rose?" He called out into the dark._

"_Turn around, Jack." Rose. She sounded weak. Her voice was tired and she sounded as though she desperately needed water. He turned slowly, afraid of what he would find. His eyes fell on her and he sucked in a strangled breath._

_Rose sat on the other side of the room on the unforgiving floor, barefoot. She was shackled at the wrists by chains that were polished silver. The chains were attached to two metal supports made of the same material. They seemed to be pulsing with some kind of energy. She wore a short silver dress that was shredded in several places. She was far too thin to be healthy; he could almost see ribs through a rip in the material. The muscles in her legs were twitching like they hadn't been used in quite some time. Her eyes, a lighter caramel than they were before, were dimmed slightly by the blue bruising under her eyes. A lack of restful sleep was apparent. Even her gorgeous hair, natural blonde and wavy somehow, hung limp and lifeless over her shoulders._

"_What have these monsters done to you, Rosie?" Jack took a few steps toward her before he was pushed back. He looked around him and then stuck his hand back to the place he had just been pushed from. The image of Rose shifted for a moment before settling. Jack looked back to Rose, who had donned a tired smile. "I'm dreaming, aren't I? This is just cruel dream created by being alive for far too long."_

_Rose sighed and shifted her arms. The chains seemed to hum and the energy encased in them seemed to strengthen. Rose's smile fell. "It's almost the hour mark again. They're sending small bursts of electricity through them; just enough to keep me alive, to restart my hearts if they fail." Jack was about to question the plural when Rose shook her head. "No, Jack. I have no time for explanations now. I must be swift. A Merinian named Dorian is planning to sacrifice me to his deity at the eclipse tomorrow morning. He believes that doing so will grant he and his followers immortality. If he can't die, it'll be easier to overthrow the monarchy. Eventually he wants the Universe. If he gets my power, Jack, nothing in the 'Verse will stop him. He has Time Lord technology. I'm bound with some of it, now." She rattled her chains. They produced an almost musical sound with the links touched each other. "At first light, Jack, the Doctor will be on your doorstep. I need to you tell him what you've learned here. Show him if you have to. The TARDIS will confirm your story. I've already met with her. I'm bound to her even now. The Void, itself, couldn't separate us forever."_

_Jack took a deep breath. "Okay, but why not contact the Doctor? He said you were in an alternate universe. You were safe with your family."_

_Rose's eyes began to glow. "A lone wolf does not survive long, but a wolf in the proper pack can thrive." She waved off Jack's question with a wave of her hand. "That is a story for a later date. Before the War, the Doctor would have been easy for me to contact. Now, he has far too many barriers around his head. He would instinctively lash out at the first sign of unfamiliar contact. Even with my Sister protecting me, it'd be a strong enough attack to leave me damaged. Unprotected, he could probably make me a vegetable for a long while." She waved off another question. Then she tensed. "Look away, Jack."_

_Jack found himself turning his head involuntarily at the command. He felt the electricity as it poured through the chains. It was enough to make the hair on arms stand on end. It lasted but a moment. He heard Rose panting, and then turned back when she made a humming noise. She hadn't cried out at the pain, hadn't shown any signs of being hurt._

_She took another breath, then met Jack's eyes again. "Time is short now. We have but minutes left. Tell him what you've seen, don't let him come without you. He'll need you, as well. The TARDIS can trace me. She's copied my DNA. Hurry Jack. My time is short, my energy fades." The scene before him shifted. "I'm sorry, Jack. The Universe still needs you, will need you for a long time yet. Good bye, Jack."_

Jack awoke with a gasping breath, drenched in a cold sweat. He headed for the shower and dressed.

He walked back into his office to check the time. The sun would be rising in ten minutes, first light. Time to meet the Doctor.

Jack grabbed his coat and headed for the lift. "Keep an eye on the place, Myfwanny."


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Again, I only own the things you don't recognize.

**Stardate:** Not Applicable ** Location: **Time Vortex

Donna rubbed the remaining sleep from her eyes and walked into the console room. The Doctor was frowning at the Time Rotor as it pulsed a strange mucus color. "Is she sick?"

The Doctor turned to look at Donna with a grin plastered on his face. "No. She's just… busy, it would seem." He ran an agitated hand through his hair as he accepted the tea she handed him.

Donna raised an eyebrow. "What? Like, she's spaced out? Staring into oblivion?" Donna realized what she said and stifled a snicker.

The Doctor looked at her like she'd just dribbled on her shirt. She was too tired to smack him. "No, like, she's a phone and there's someone on the line. We've got a busy signal, so to speak." Donna watched in bemusement as he jumped up and started fiddling with the dials on the console. He hit a button harder than he'd meant to, and the Rotor pulsed before the console sparked him.

The Doctor sighed. "Well, when she decides to grace us with her full attention again, where do you want to go? The singing mountains of Chelseek, Paris before the Eiffle Tower, Barcelona; the planet, not the country? Dogs with no noses! Ooh, or how about Midnight? A crystalline resort planet."

Donna smiled, "Yeah, a vacation sounds nice."

The Rotor pulsed and the screens on the console flickered back to life. The Doctor jumped up and caressed the console. "What were you up to, old girl?" The console sparked him again, and the Rotor started pumping. The TARDIS shook.

Donna fell on the jump seat. "What's going on? Are we going to Midnight, Doctor?"

He grabbed a screen and blanched. "Cardiff? Why is it always, Cardiff?" The room stopped shaking and he helped Donna get up, from where she had fallen off the jump seat.

"What's in Cardiff?" The Doctor was about to respond when the lock clicked and Jack stepped inside with a grim look on his face.

"Doctor, it's Rose. Something's wrong." At the Doctor's look of disbelief, he stepped inside and shut the door behind him before walking up to the Doctor. "Look, I don't know how to explain it. She was short on time and she said she'd explain later. Just… just look in my head. See what I saw." The Doctor looked at him like he'd lost his mind, but remained silent, clearly intrigued. "I know what I said about you poking around in there, but Doctor, it's _Rose_, and she needs us."

The Doctor hesitated another minute. The TARDIS hummed an agreement. He turned to look at her. "That's what you were up to? You were talking to Rose?" The TARDIS hummed again. "Alright, I'll look. You'd better not be wasting my time, Harkness."

He put his fingers on Jack's temples and they both went silent. Donna didn't know how long they would be there, so she walked back to her tea and started cleaning up the mess.

When she walked back in a few minutes later, the Doctor and Jack were running around the console programming coordinates. "So, what's the plan?"

Jack looked up. "Storm the sewer, save the Lady, beat the bad guy, and then have a drink."

The Doctor snorted. "Exactly! Minus the drink, unless you mean tea." He slid the lever into place and the TARDIS shook. "Allons-y!"

**XXXXX**

**Stardate:**1/Apple7-Delta4 **Location:** Meridian Prime

"Rise and shine, Wolfie. It's a bright new day and the eclipse is mere hours away." Rose came to slowly. Her head felt foggy and her limbs were heavy. Her mouth was parched and her tongue was starting to swell. That last bolt of electricity had been a bit too much. Her hearts had stopped for a moment, apparently.

Dorian's face, olive skin, green eyes, gray hair, and perfect straight teeth, obscured her vision. "So, how do you like your new dress? My wife designed it herself. You look like a dream, I have to say. Yes, my goddess will be very pleased." He walked away and gave her a view of a new room. It was dingy, and damp. Cold, even more so than the room she had been chained up in. It was large enough to hold a small crowd and lit by silver orbs floating around the ceiling. A holovid of the Cult's deity, Memway, was playing against the wall closest to her. She was on ebony marble table, bound by those chains.

Dorian noticed her examining the room. He clapped. "Oh yes, we had you moved. You see that hole in the ceiling above you?" Rose nodded. "Right. When the eclipse begins, that panel will slide to the side and the chanting will begin. When the eclipse is complete, I'll plunge my dagger into your chest, and the chains will begin their duty. You see, they're programmed to begin sucking the blood out of your body as soon as a fatal blow is struck. Your blood, as you know Wolf, is laced with the Vortex, Time runs through your veins. It'll channel all of it into the machine behind you and then turn it into a liquid we can ingest. With no blood, you can't regenerate. We drink the blood, Memway grants us eternal life, and then we take the planet. After that, it's really only a matter of time before we take the Universe. Ultimate Power will be mine."

Rose sighed. "Even if this plan works, Dorian, it won't be Ultimate Power. I have limits. The only time I've ever let it all out, it nearly killed me. It did kill my Love. You won't survive it. You can't. It burns, Dorian, it sears through your veins like liquid fire and leaves you in a pain so blinding you can only wish for death. I was born for this power. You were not. You will die, or you will be left with no reprieve."

Dorian sniffed. "Well, we'll just have to find out won't we?" He looked at something over his shoulder. "Really though, how do you like the dress? You haven't even looked at it. My wife takes a large amount of pride in her work. She'd be disappointed if you died in clothes you didn't like."

He clearly wanted a compliment for his wife. Rose had seen the dress. It was pretty. In any other circumstance, she'd probably love it. It was white silk on the bosom with little cap sleeves. There was a gold ribbon beneath her breasts, and then it flowed down like a Grecian dress. The lower half was white silk underneath and white tulle on top. Simple, but elegant.

Before she could attempt an answer, Dorian cursed. He opened his wrist comp and read the message. She could see the writing through the small hologram that flickered to life above it.

_**Security Breach. Sector 8.**_

Rose hid her glee. Jack and the Doctor were here.

Dorian rolled his eyes and walked away, murmuring something about the useless help.

As soon as the door slid shut behind, another behind her opened and a red haired female in a purple coat slipped into the room. She gasped when she caught sight of Rose, then pulled out a hairpin and ran up to the table Rose was lying on.

Rose watched as the woman began working on the locks and started chattering away. "Hello. I'm Donna. I'm the Doctor's companion. Jack's setting up a distraction, the Doctor's on his way with the royal guard. I'm to get you out of here and to the TARDIS. Why he couldn't give me his screwdriver, I'll never understand. I get that the chains are probably deadlock sealed, but there are other things the screwdriver would be useful for. Honestly, for someone who's supposed to be a genius, he ain't half stupid." She rolled her eyes as the last lock clicked open. Donna's face lit up. "Wizard. Now, let's get you out of here. The TARDIS is right outside that door."

She helped Rose sit up, then pulled her up on her feet. "Alright there?" Rose nodded her head. "Think you can walk then?" Rose nodded again and took a step.

Her legs gave out from under her as Rose lost consciousness. It was only then that Donna realized how pallid Rose's complexion was. She was malnourished and her wrists were bleeding. Donna sighed and blew her hair out of face.

She hauled Rose's arm around her shoulder and wrapped her arm around the younger woman's waist, and started hauling her to the door she had come through. "Wizard."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **I think this is the end of the story. I suck at coming up with clever ways to tie a plot together, so I'm just going to skip to the next part and let the Doctor explain what happened. Sorry.

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize it, I don't own it.

**Stardate:** Not Applicable **Location:** Time Vortex

The Doctor got them into the Vortex before he joined Donna and Jack in the Infirmary.

Jack had the dermal regenerator on and was currently healing Rose's wrists. Donna was moving ahead of him, making sure the area was clean and then doubling back around to clean again after the regenerator.

Donna had done like the Doctor showed her as soon as she carried Rose in. She hooked her up to the two heart monitors on either side of her, and then put in the IV so Rose's body could start getting the nutrients it was lacking.

"How is she?" Jack looked up at the sound of the Doctor's voice in the doorway.

He sighed and turned off the regenerator. "I was right. She was electrocuted several times, she was dehydrated and malnourished, and it seems like she was there for longer than she let on. Doctor, her hearts stopped at least once."

The Doctor sat in a chair by the bed. "So, she really meant hearts." He ran a hand through his hair, then pulled on his ear. "What happened to her in that parallel universe?"

There was a whimper from Rose. They looked in surprise as she opened her eyes, blinking to adjust to the light. The lights dimmed a bit in response. Rose smiled softly and reached an arm above her head to pet the wall. "Thank you." She looked at the trio encircling the bed. "Explanations then? Alright, where shall I start?"

The Doctor sat on the bed beside her and grabbed her hand. He smiled. "Rose Tyler, you impossible woman. Let's start with the hearts thing, shall we? Hearts, as in plural?"

Rose squeezed his hand and closed her eyes. "Hearts as in plural, yes. 'I am the Bad Wolf, I create myself.' It started there. Words have power and there was power behind those words. That power echoed back all the way to my birth and started molding me into the person I would become. After I absorbed the Heart of the TARDIS, my physiology started changing. A headache here, a dream-like voice in my head there. Small things, so minor you wouldn't have noticed them even if we had bothered to check. You took the Vortex out of me, yes, but I had reached into the future and planted a small spark there, to be activated at the end of my life. Apparently, I knew we'd be separated so I had also set a defense mechanism. When I died, I was teleported back to my own universe. Shot through a small hole in between the universes, tiny enough to keep stable on my own without even realizing it. I lived a good, long human life. Mum and Pete grew old together, celebrated forty-eight years. Tony, my little brother, grew up surrounded by the best in life with a mother who wouldn't take any nonsense from him. He graduated top of his class and from university with a major in business and alien languages. Mickey married a woman named Martha Jones, and they had three kids. He was my right-hand man when I took over Torchwood after Pete retired. Tony's son, Evan, took over when I had to retire. I never married, there was never anyone else. On my eighty-second birthday, I was walking home from the grocery store. I was a spry old lady and feisty to boot. Some kid decided to try and mug a teenage girl. I got in the way, and got myself shot. I died in the alley." She sighed and opened her eyes.

She had everyone's attention, even the TARDIS was listening intently. "Then I woke up. I walked out of the alley and straight into an alien black market. Unfortunately, I didn't know what happened, that I had activated the Vortex in my head. I had stopped a small window of time without even realizing I had done it. It was too small, though, because Dorian noticed. He had his goons grab me as soon as I had figured out how to release it. I could feel the TARDIS in my head, a bond reaching through space and time. I spent weeks in that prison, constantly chained up, living on bread and a small amount of water; just enough to stay alive. I turned all his chains to dust until he found the chains that were timeless. Time Lord technology. Did you get all that stuff, by the way?"

The Doctor nodded and then motioned for her to go on. She continued. "That's really about it. I figured I needed outside help to get away. You had too many barriers around your mind, Doctor, so I did the only other thing I could think of. I contacted the TARDIS, made a temporary bond with her as my anchor, and got Jack's attention. Then the TARDIS took you to him, so you could come rescue me together. The End. What happened on your end?"

Jack laughed. "The monarchy already knew something was up. He just didn't know what. The Doctor tipped him off, I made a distraction, the Doctor snuck the Royal Guard in while Donna was getting you to safety, and then we let them take it from there."

Donna yawned. "Well, if you're okay now, I think I'm gonna hit the shower and then bed. I'm tired."

Jack stood up and joined her at the door. "Me, too."

Donna looked him over with a critical eye. "You can share my room if you need it."

Jack smirked. "I'd be honored gorgeous."

The Doctor sighed. "Not on my TARDIS, Jack." He turned to Rose when Jack and Donna walked out, laughing. "Now then, Rose Tyler, I believe there was something I was going to say to you back on that beach."

Rose sat up and grinned, tongue between her teeth. "Yeah, and how was that sentence gonna end?"

He smiled. "Rose Tyler, I love you." Then he kissed her.

The TARDIS set a course for Barcelona. Midnight could wait a few weeks, and he had promised to take Rose. There was much they needed to discuss but that could wait for another day. In the empty console room, a lever was dropped and the Time Rotor pulsed as the TARDIS flew her inhabitants to a lovely vacation, in time and space.


End file.
